


Many, Many Yesterdays Have Become a Part of Our Muscles

by puddinghead



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Friendship/Love, Future Fic, M/M, Post-Canon, idk how to tag this it's just kuroken being kuroken and me being soft about them, kenma is so patient, kuroo underthinking and then overthinking, yaku bokuto and akaashi are only briefly mentioned rip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-01
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-10-04 15:09:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20473070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/puddinghead/pseuds/puddinghead
Summary: Kuroo: Saw Bokuto and Akaashi at the grocery store just nowKenma: oh.Kuroo: They asked if we were datingKenma: oh.Kuroo: So like… are we?





	Many, Many Yesterdays Have Become a Part of Our Muscles

**Author's Note:**

> I got the title and inspiration for this from something the Miya twins think to themselves in chapter 280. Obviously, it's a different context, but I really like the sound of that line. I think it fits Kuroo and Kenma quite well.

The first time had been in middle school.

A kid in his class had watched Kuroo say goodbye to Kenma at the door before coming in, as he did everyday. He’d waited until Kuroo had walked across the room to his desk, and then, loudly: “Are you guys like, dating or something?” Kuroo had scrunched up his face in confusion, retorting with an incredulous “No! What’s your problem?” The kid had just snickered, apparently satisfied with his flustered response, and he never brought it up again.

The second time was in his third year of high school. Kenma had just gone to the bathroom when Yaku had pulled Kuroo aside.

“Hey, can I ask you something… Personal?”

“Sure, what?”

Yaku had peeked over at the still-closed bathroom door before asking in a whisper, “Are you and Kenma… Dating?”

Kuroo had just raised an eyebrow, his eyes slightly narrowed. “No…? Why would you think that?”

“Oh,” Yaku had said a bit sheepishly. “Well, it’s just that you two really understand each other. Like, I’ve known you both all throughout high school, but…” He’d crossed his arms, his head cocked to the side in thought. “I don’t know, sometimes he’ll say something and you’ll give him this look, and I feel like the whole thing’s just gone over my head, you know? So I was just wondering.” The bathroom door had swung open and left Yaku to conclude with a hurried, “Sorry for misreading things!”

The third time had been approximately twenty minutes ago. Kuroo set his shopping bags at his feet and pulled out his phone as he sunk into the bus seat.

_Kuroo: Saw Bokuto and Akaashi at the grocery store just now_

_ Kenma: oh._

_ Kuroo: They asked if we were dating_

_ Kenma: oh._

_ Kuroo: So like… are we?_

There was no response. He looked out the window as the bus rumbled through the night. His mind wandered back to Bokuto flagging him down in the produce aisle.

_“Hey, hey, hey! Kuroo! Akaashi and I were just wondering something!”_

_ “You were mostly the one wondering, Bokuto-san.”_

_ “But I know you’re curious, too, Akaashi! So, Kuroo: are you and Kenma dating?”_

His phone buzzed in his hand.

_Kenma: sorry. playing love live._

_ Kenma: anyway i guess i’ve never really thought about it before._

Kuroo smiled to himself. He looked around the bus and his eyes landed on a couple across from him who were watching something on the guy’s phone. They were sharing earbuds, and the girl, the lower half of her face eclipsed by a fluffy scarf, was nuzzled into her boyfriend’s shoulder.

_Kuroo: It’s not the first time someone’s asked me, u know_

_ Kenma: huh._

_ Kuroo: First it was this snotty kid in my middle school class, and then Yaku actually_

_ Kenma: yaku thought we were dating?_

_ Kuroo: Yeah…_

His finger hovered over the letters on the screen. He glanced up at the couple across from him again before adding to his message.

_Kuroo: Yeah… Anyway it just got me thinking. Sorry to drop that on u_

There was another long pause. Kuroo scooped up his groceries as the bus creaked to a halt at his stop. Sure, he had fired off those first texts without really thinking – what had he expected? But, that was how almost everything was between them; Kuroo didn’t _think_ when he wrapped an arm around Kenma’s waist, or laced their fingers together, or let him settle into his lap while he played a video game. They just… _Did_. Everything was a natural flow, blood and oxygen circulating through the body.

He arrived at his apartment and unloaded his groceries onto the kitchen counter. It was nice and quiet; his roommate must have still been out. _‘That guy’s a party animal’_, Kuroo thought, shaking his head. He reveled in the silence as he made his way to his room, the groceries put away, his schoolwork finished. He would do a little reading just to get ahead in his literature class and then go to bed early.

His phone buzzed in his pocket as he closed the bedroom door.

_Kenma: so what did you tell them?_

Kuroo licked his lips. He hadn’t been expecting a reply to his last message.

_Kuroo: Bokuto and Akaashi? I told em we’re not dating…_

_ Kenma: oh._

_ Kenma: ok. goodnight._

Kuroo stared down at his phone. He was still standing, poised to plop down onto the bed, but all the momentum in his body had stopped. The last texts had come instantaneously; it was like his finger had still been on the “send” button when Kenma replied. He let out a breath that he didn’t know he’d been holding. Forget what he’d been _expecting _when he’d asked if they were dating; what, he wondered, had he actually been _hoping _for Kenma to say? He finally sat down and folded his hands in his lap.

_“oh.”_

_ “ok.”_

He didn’t get to sleep that night as early as he’d hoped.

–––

When he got off the train on Friday, he felt good. He could see Kenma waiting for him on a bench at the end of the platform. They visited each other every weekend if their schedules would allow; Kuroo usually did the visiting, since he actually liked to travel, though sometimes Kenma made his way to him instead. But, this weekend, Kuroo was here as usual. The train hadn’t been too crowded, the sun was bright, the air was crisp. Things were good. Things were normal.

“Hey!” he greeted as he approached the bench. Kenma was clearly finishing up a level as he muttered a “Hi, Kuro” in response, so Kuroo waited for him to clear it and lower his phone before wrapping him in a hug. Kenma’s thick scarf pressed against his chest, and for a moment, the couple he’d seen on the bus a few days ago flashed in his mind.

Maybe things weren’t so normal after all.

Kuroo decided that he wanted to have that conversation at some point. It just wasn’t fair of him to ask, “Hey, are we dating or what?” out of the blue and then pretend it never happened. He knew that, and he was fully prepared to confront the situation that he himself had created. However, now wasn’t the right time, so he let things take their natural course as they walked off to get food. It also wasn’t the right time when they were eating. And it certainly wasn’t the right time when they walked to Kenma’s apartment.

So, there they were, sitting in Kenma’s room, Kuroo lying stomach-down on the bed and Kenma sitting on the floor in front of him playing a game, The Conversation still wholly unbreached. Kuroo’s cheek rested in the crook of his arm, right next to Kenma’s head. He watched the TV screen intently as a cutscene unfolded; this was a game they had both been interested in, so Kenma had waited until this weekend to start it so they could experience it together. Kuroo idly brought his free hand to Kenma’s head and started combing through his hair. He had let it grow out just a little bit since high school. He’d said it was because now that he didn’t play volleyball as regularly, he wouldn’t have to worry about it getting in the way. It was such a Kenma explanation, Kuroo thought with a smile as he slid his fingers through the brassy locks.

“This is why people think we’re dating, you know.”

Kuroo’s smile vanished. A chill tingled through his whole body; it was like those commercials for mint candy where the person takes a bite and then the screen shows their goosebumps up-close. Kuroo _hated_ mint.

“Wh–“

“It’s because you do stuff like that. Run your fingers through my hair, hold my hand. Those aren’t really normal friend things.” Kenma’s eyes were still glued to the screen, as were Kuroo’s; the difference was that Kuroo saw the characters’ dialogue, but wasn’t actually reading any of it. It all blurred together into random white shapes, lines and dots that his mind suddenly couldn’t process. He lowered his hand back to the bed and it felt like it was made of lead.

“I get it,” Kenma continued. “It’s just in your muscles. It’s in mine, too. We’ve been together for so long that our bodies move naturally.” The cutscene ended and the screen went black for a moment as it loaded. “When I said I’d never thought about us dating before, I meant it. I guess that was easier for me because no one’s ever asked me about it. But if they did…” The screen lit up again as a boss monster emerged before the heroes. Kenma’s tone didn’t change as he smashed the buttons, his characters shouting their attack names one after another as they charged at the monster. “I probably wouldn’t hesitate to say ‘yes.’”

There was silence for a moment; nothing but the clicking of buttons and the characters’ shouts. The boss was at half HP already. Kuroo watched its health bar lower more and more, yellow steadily turning to dire red as it drained down at Kenma’s hands. Soon, it was empty, and the characters all cheered in celebration as their rewards totaled on the screen. Kenma turned around to face Kuroo. He was smiling.

“So, you don’t have to worry about it so much, Kuro.”

Kuroo stared at him. After a moment, his face broke into a relieved smile, and then a grateful one, and then an absolutely elated one so wide that it hurt his cheeks. He sprung up and, before Kenma could even gasp, pulled him off the ground and onto the bed in front of him, winding his arms tightly around his waist.

“I have the best boyfriend,” Kuroo said blissfully, resting his head against Kenma’s back.

“… You didn’t even know if we were dating and now you’re calling me your boyfriend?”

“Mhmm. Hey, by the way, you have to go back – I totally missed the end of that cutscene.”

“I can’t. It auto-saved. You’ll have to look it up online.”

“What?! Can’t you just tell me what happened?!”


End file.
